Many of us have questions about the passage of life and often wonder what happens when we die. In this amazingly insightful book by medium/clairvoyant Lisa Williams, evidence of the afterlife is explored. Through various channels such as meditation, psychic readings, communication with her Spirit Guide, and a personal near-death experience, Lisa delves into the journey of the soul, discusses the different stages of the afterlife, and reveals what life is really like on the other side.

This book addresses the myriad questions many of us have surrounding this subject, especially if we’ve gone through the painful experience of having lost loved ones. Lisa provides a reassuring glimpse into this fascinating topic by exploring the pathway to the afterlife and then to reincarnation; with the realization that death is not final, but rather a transition into the world beyond—a place that should be honored, not feared.

EXCERPT FROM CHAPTER 4

WHY WE FEAR DEATH—AND DON’T HAVE TO

Someone once told me that if someone comes to you with an important question about anything in life, then he or she is prepared to hear the answer. This coincides with my belief that we actually already know the answers to our important questions—we’re only asking to get confirmation that our intuition is correct and that we’re on the right path for our journey.

When individuals come to me with concerns about their loved ones who have passed, I know that even though they may intuit the answers, they’re also seeking reassurance or comfort from the messages that come through. Those left behind want to know if their loved ones were aware that they were dying, or whether they were in any pain. Or their questions are of a personal nature, such as, “Did he know I was there in the room with him?” or “Did she know I missed her passing by only five minutes?” People especially second-guess their own reactions, asking, “Did I do the right thing? Should I feel guilty that I didn’t make it to the funeral or memorial?”

Having given so many readings over the years, I can now see more similarities in them than differences. Underlying most questions I’m asked is this concern: Is my loved one all right? But once this issue is handled, clients seem to want to know more about what we face after passing from this life. They worry, Does my life continue, or is this it? Do I no longer exist; does nothing survive? Yet these queries simply point to the bigger question that just about everyone who is alive has, and that is: Should I be afraid to die?

A Natural, Human Fear

It’s only normal to fear death, especially when you’ve lost someone or are facing the transition yourself. You’ve probably heard it said that there are only two things that are certain in life: death and taxes. This is true, and most of us don’t like to think about either of them. However, since we all came into the world, we all have to leave it. The fantasies about being bitten by a vampire and living eternally with your soul mate are all very romantic, but immortality isn’t the only way to hold on to someone you love. You will see your friends and family members in the Afterlife, and therefore have a chance to love them once again.

Mediums and psychics aren’t immune from this fear of death either. When my Nan Frances was close to the end of her life, she was taken to the hospital, where she lapsed into a coma for days. During this time, I sat at her bedside and was somehow able to tap into her soul. Knowing what my grandmother was thinking—and that she was afraid to pass—was strange for me because I was still a bit “in the closet” about my own abilities. I knew that being able to communicate with her was a part of my gift, but I hadn’t explored other possibilities inherent in that gift and had generally kept quiet about it. I knew that if I told my mother the information I was getting from Nan, Mom would be upset . . . especially since there was already a lot of family drama swirling around the situation at the hospital.

I wonder why there tends to be so much turmoil when someone passes. Of course, personal experience (from readings and my own life) has helped me see a few reasons why people might become embroiled in conflict at this time. Stress is the first one. It’s difficult enough to see a loved one suffer and have to face transitioning to the other side, but family members and close friends also have to deal with the fact that they’re losing someone very special to them. Unfortunately, the situation gets tense, tempers flare, and arguments occur—all of which is very normal. Everyone is naturally thinking ahead to what life is going to be like, and each person deals with it in his or her own way.

Family members also have differing opinions on how to handle legal, medical, and financial issues, often feeling that they’re acting in the best interest of others without realizing that they’re actually forcing their point across. This, of course, can lead to many disputes, involving a widening circle of relatives. It’s a very common scenario, and when you look at the same things from an outsider’s point of view, you see them very differently.

Then you have situations in which people aren’t trying to make decisions for the benefit of others, but are acting purely out of their own self-interest. Some unscrupulous individuals are thinking solely about family heirlooms, jewelry, and other items of inheritance that they’ve had their eye on. Sadly, this happens quite a bit, leading to behaviors and actions that cause interpersonal strife.

To avoid all of this, love should be the one thing you remain connected to. When you act out of love for the person passing, whether your actions are taken the right way or not, everyone benefits.

During the time my Nan was in a coma and I was communicating with her soul, I felt very alone and cut off, much like my feelings of isolation as a child. Again, I knew I couldn’t tell anyone for fear of upsetting those around me. I had no idea that it would take so long for me to understand what my grandmother had experienced before she finally left the Earth plane.

Six years after Nan Frances passed, I did a reading for a woman named Jill, who nervously clutched her cell phone the entire time. She told me that she was awaiting an urgent call, and if it came during the reading, she’d have to leave at once. I totally understood—in fact, this wasn’t the first time a client came to me gripping a cell phone—and I assured her that she could go whenever she needed to.

As I focused on receiving a message for Jill, I began to get an energy coming in on my left side. I normally pick up messages from my right, so this was unusual. I started to tell Jill that I had her father-in-law with me and that he wanted to let her know he was okay, that he had left his body temporarily and was actually watching everyone from afar. He expressed that she should tell everyone that he was feeling fine, and that it was only “a matter of time” before he passed.

Jill had been crying and checking her phone every few minutes, but when I gave her this information, she stopped, looked around, and asked, “Are you really here?” Her father-in-law answered, Yes, but I don’t like these pajamas. Jill gave a deep shudder and sigh, and told me that the call she was waiting would be letting her know if her father-in-law, who was in a coma, had passed away. She knew that he hated the pajamas he was wearing in the hospital, but they were the only ones his wife had been able to find when she was hurriedly leaving their house. The call never came during our reading, but a few days later, Jill phoned to tell me that he had indeed passed.

I learned from my reading with Jill that when a person is in a coma, the soul is released from the body to go where it may. The purpose of the soul’s release in this way is twofold: either to allow the body to heal and recover (in which case, the soul will return when the body is healed), or because the soul is about to embark on its journey into the Afterlife. The silver cord that ties the body and soul together may have broken at this point, but the soul does not completely leave the body until the body has taken its last breath and the heart has stopped beating.

When my Nan lay dying and in a coma, I didn’t know that her soul had started on its journey and that she had begun to deal with her fear of what would happen in the transition process. I knew from what she’d told me a few years earlier during a reading she did for me—“If I see my own death, I’m going to stop”—that she was scared of the inevitable. At the time, I didn’t give this a second thought. But later, sitting by her deathbed, I knew that she was pleading not to die, repeating her earlier fear about crossing over into the Afterlife.

Nan’s reaction as she passed seemed strange to me, since it came from a woman who’d had daily connections with souls in the Afterlife through the many readings she’d done over the years. She was someone who’d stood up before large audiences and worked the platform in many spiritual churches, providing evidence and facts that life continued after death. Now here she was—afraid of dying!

I couldn’t accept this about her at the time, but looking back, I realize that this was due to my own immaturity. As I matured and went through my own near-death experience (NDE), I came to understand that even though we mediums know for certain that life continues, the actual transition can be a worrisome thing. It is natural and human to fear the unknown.

We all have to face the reality that at some point in life we must deal with death— whether because someone in our world is passing, or because we’re facing the transition ourselves. Either way, that’s one of the reasons why I decided to write The Survival of the Soul. My aim is to ease the fear of the unknown that just about everyone carries within. I want to assure all of you that not only is there an Afterlife, but there is also nothing to fear about death. Understand that when you die depends on your soul and the lessons you have already decided to learn, as well as the lessons those around you need to learn from your passing.

Nan continued to hold on in her coma for a while; unfortunately, she remained desperately afraid despite her years of daily communication with souls who had passed on. Visiting her as she lay in her hospital bed got me thinking about death and the possibility of an Afterlife, especially on my long rides home after seeing her. Mine were the normal questions that everyone asks: Will I see my family in the Afterlife? Is there a white light? Is it going to hurt? What do you do all day in the Afterlife? Is there really life after death, or is this it?

I did end up receiving the answers to these questions ... so I will share what I’ve learned with you within these pages.